CS
421 gives an introduction to principles and techniques used in software
engineering.

The following are the expected outcomes from this course:

An understanding of all phases of the software engineering
lifecycle (requirements, design, implementation, testing, deployment,
maintenance).

An understanding of several lifecycle models including both
prescriptive and agile methodologies and knowledge of tradeoffs among
the methodologies.

An ability to create and use UML models to document
software analysis and design artifacts

An understanding of fundamental techniques used to lead a
software team.

An ability to apply software engineering techniques to
complete the requirements and design phases of a large software project.

CS 421 will have a software
engineering project that requires student to participate in working
teams where students organize, manage, and practice a software
engineering project. This will be a design project and implementation.
See project page for more details.

CS 421 includes Writing
Intensive (WI) activities
that, together with those of CS 306, meet the GMU WI Requirements in
the BS CS Program (http://wac.gmu.edu).
This means you will write 1750 graded words (or about 7 standard
pages). You will get feedback on this writing, and be able to resubmit
revisions based on the feedback. For this course, the writing will
include part of the group project, and an individual essay on a
software engineering topic. The schedule for the writing assignment
will be presented in class.

I will use email to send information about
the course, ask questions, etc... You must check your GMU email
account. If you prefer to use another account, that is okay, just
forward your GMU email to your preferred account. How to forward GMU email

Grades will be posted to courses.gmu.edu.
This is the replacement for WebCT.

GRADE
APPEAL POLICY:
If you feel you deserve a better grade on
an assignment, you can appeal your grade in writing. Written grade
appeals will only be accepted within 7 days of you receivng the grade.
The appeal should clearly explain why you feel you deserve a higher
grade. I will never lower your grade due to an appeal, but I may or may
not raise your grade depending on your justification.

LATE POLICY:
All
homework must be received by the deadline. No late homeworks will be
accepted. The final version of the paper is due on April 23rd. No
further revisions will be allowed after that date. All
project
assignments must be submitted during class when they are due. Revisions
will be allowed up to three times for any project assignment except the
presentation (because we have no way to revise and redo the
presentation). All project documents must be turned in by the last day
of class. No revisions will be accepted after this time.

HONOR
CODE STATEMENT:
As
with all GMU courses, this course is governed by the GMU Honor Code. In
this course, all assignments, exams, and project submissions carry with
them an implicit statement that it is the sole work of the author,
unless joint work is explicitly authorized. Help may be obtained from
the instructor or other students to understand the description of the
problem and any technology, but the solution, particularly the design
portion, must be the student's own work. If joint work is authorized,
all contributing students must be listed on the submission. Any
deviation from this is considered an Honor Code violation, and as a
minimum, will result in failure of the submission and as a maximum,
failure of the class.

PLAGIARISM:
Plagiarism
is stealing the work of others and presenting it as your
own. This
includes written papers, but also computer programs, presentations,
etc... anything that was not created by you should be referenced. When
in doubt, add a reference. If you have any questions about whether you
can or cannot use something you've found ask your professor or TA. If
another student let you copy their work you are BOTH guilty. Any
plagiarism violations will be sent to the Honor Committee. If you are
found guilty of plagiarism twice in your university career you will be
expelled. This is a very serious offense! More information about
plagiarism is on the writing
center website and at plagiarism.org.
If you feel the need to do this for any reason, come talk to your
professor and we'll work out a better plan. There is ALWAYS a better
plan than plagiarising!

This class
will use
automated tools to detect plagiarism (including written materials and
source code).

DISABILITY STATEMENT:
If
you are a student with a disability and
you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact
the
Disability Resource Center (DRC) at 703.993.2474. All academic
accommodations must be arranged through that office.